Coshocton Foundation awards grants to community organizations

The distribution committee of the Coshocton Foundation had its first meeting of fiscal year 2026 recently and reviewed 23 unrestricted grant applications totaling $588,196.85. The committee awarded seven total and six partial grants totaling $114,094.71 to several community organizations. The grants awarded include the following:

—$25,000 to Friends of the Parks to assist with plans to restore the 103-year-old flooring at the Lake Park Pavilion.

—$15,000 to OSU Extension Coshocton County 4-H Advisory Committee to provide for their E-bike Youth Empowerment and Community Wellness Initiative, providing area residents with guided e-bike experiences that promote physical activity, emotional support, mentorship and leadership development.

—$12,000 to Coshocton County Drug & Alcohol Council Inc. to provide support with timely cognitive assessments to children in Coshocton County whose families cannot afford private testing to identify learning disabilities, development delays, giftedness and behavioral needs.

—$10,450 to Help Ohio, DBA Ohio Dyslexia Center, to provide access for students with dyslexia to systematic, research-based intervention in reading and spelling for those in fourth grade and above.

—$10,000 to Walhonding Valley Historical Society to provide assistance with their plans to install a new HVAC system at the museum in the Old Warsaw Hotel.

—$10,000 to River View Local School District to provide additional assistance.

—$8,634.71 to Jackson Township Fire Department to provide support in the purchase of new thermal imaging cameras, enabling firefighters to see through smoke and darkness, locate victims, identify hotspots, and monitor fire spread while greatly improving safety.

—$6,000 to Three Rivers Recreation to provide support in its spectator and player safety initiatives.

—$5,000 to GhostBox Productions to provide assistance in the purchase of sound/audio equipment for company productions and workshops.

—$4,010 to Clary Gardens Foundation to provide support for an educational botanical trail through the woodlands celebrating the Native American way of life.

—$3,000 to First Step FVIS Inc. to provide assistance with a fire and security system at the Hope House Shelter.

—$2,500 to Hope Hollow to provide support for Coshocton County residents being treated for a cancer diagnosis with nutrition, transportation, lodging and emotional support.

—$2,500 to Coshocton County Board of Commissioners to provide assistance with events and activities during a Coshocton County America 250 Celebration.

—$2,000 to Coshocton County Dollars for Scholars to continue in supporting local students with their pursuit of higher education.

The Coshocton Foundation Distribution Committee’s second meeting for fiscal year 2026 will be in early June. The deadline for unrestricted grant applications for the meeting will be Friday, May 15 at 4 p.m.

The Coshocton Foundation was established in 1966 through the Last Will and Testament of local merchant Adolph Golden and has distributed more than $10 million in grants to community organizations from its unrestricted fund. In addition, the foundation has more than 185 restricted funds from which distributions are made for specific purposes. More information about the Coshocton Foundation can be found at www.coshoctonfoundation.org.